Pipe-wrapping machine



March 29,1927.

. C. S. EVANS 2132' WRAPPING MACHINE Marc h 29, 1927.

C. S. EVANS. PIPE WRAPPING MACHINE- Flled Mavll. 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet Patented Mar. 29, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES vS. EVANS, OF OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE PARAFFINE COI- PANIES, INC., 0]? SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, A CORIOBATION OF DELAWARE.

PIPE-WRAPPING MACHINE.

Application filed May 11, 1926. Serial No. 108,240.

My invention relates to machines for winding strips of covering material upon cylindrical or other bodies and especially to pipe Wrapping machines.

()ne of the objects of the invention is the provision of a pipe wrapping machine which may readily be set up and operated in the field where the pipe is to be used.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a pipe Wrapping machine of simple and rugged construction andone particularly suitable for wrapping, heavy pipe of large diameter.

Another object of the invention is the pro- I vision of a pipe wrapping machine in which the pipe is propelled forward by movement of a carriage on which the end of the pipe is supported, the carriage also embodying means for I'Ottltillg the pipe and means for adjusting to a predetermined ratio the rotary speed of the pipe and the forward speed of the carriage. Another object of the invention is the provision of a pipe wrapping machine of the character described embodying automatically operating means for stopping at predetermined points the dual movement of the pipe.

My invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which with the foregoing will be set forth in the following description of my invention which is illustrated in the drawings forming part of the specification. It is to be understood that 1 do not limit myselftothe showing made by the said description and drawings,- as I may adopt varyin forms of my invention within the scope'of the claims.

Referring to the drawings: Figure 1 is divided into two parts, 1 and 1", and shows a plan view of the complete machine with two lengths of pipe therein.

' Figure l 'is a plan of that portion of the machine including the carriage and track, a

portion being broken away to shorten this part of the figure. Figure 1 is a plan view of that part of the machine including the mechanism for feeding a. strip of wrapping material to the pipe, the means for applying the saturant material to the strip, and the -supporting means forlthe pipe after it leaves the wrapping mechanism.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view thru 'a portion of the driving mechanism, the

plan of section being indicated by the line pipe or other object to be wrapped, a stripof material saturated and/or coated with a suitable waterproof and dccay-proof matei rial, preferably of bituminous character, thus giving the pipe a protective sheathing of great durability. The end of the strip which passes thru the 'saturant materialbefore it reaches the pipe is applied at an angle to the pipe, and the pipe is then turned and at the same time fed forwardly so that the wrapping strip is drawn thru the coating material and upon the pipe to form a helical wrapping thereon.

- The pipe is supported at one end on the carriage and atthe forward or leading end on suitable'casters; Means are provided for propelling the carriage forwardly and at the same. time rotating the pipe-supporting- ,head and these two movements, that is, axial and rotary are'so pro ortioned that the resultant movement of t 1e pipe will draw thewrapping material thereon in a'helix, the itch of which 'is determined bythe ratio etween these two speeds. This ratio is 'adjusted in accordance with the width of the wrapping strip, the size of the pipe andwhetherthe wrapping strip is to be applied with flush joints or lap joints.

A prime mover of any suitable type, conveniently an electric motor, is arran ed upon the carria e and connected by suita le gearing to a bull wheel meshing with the stationary rack so that rotation of the bull wheel propels the carriage along the track.

Transmission. mechanism embodying a'speed varying device also connects the prime mover with the pipe-supporting-head or face plate,

so that the speed of rotation of the face plate may be proportioned to the driving speed of the carriage. Friction clutch means are interposed between the prime mover and the driving mechanism and both manual and automatic means are provided. for controlling this clutch so that the carriage feed as well as the rotation of the face plate may be automatically controlled. Clutch means are also provided in the driving mechanismfor reversing the. direction of rotation of the bull wheel to return the carriage to first position at a'higher rate of speed than its forward movement, and for permitting the carriage and the face plate to be moved independently.

In terms of greater detail my machine comprises a suitable frame 2 to support the tracks 3, upon which the carriage 4.is adapted to run on the wheels .5. J ournaled in the bearing fixed on the carriage is a face plate 6, provided with a chuck having a cone flange adapted to ,seat in the end ofthe pipe 8 which is to be wrapped. Two or more toothed dogs 9 are pivotally mounted on the chuck to engagethe pipe and insure it turning with the face plate. Each dog is retalned by a spring 11 in either active or inactive position as shown in Figure 5. Several different sizes of chucks are provided to fit different sizes of pipe, and are fastened to the'face .plate by means of cap screws 12. The periphery of the face plate is provided with gear teeth in which mesh the driving pinion 13, journaled on suitable brackets extending from the body of the carriage. The pinion is fixed on the shaft 14 and connected by the gears 16 with the shaft 17, on

' the other end of'which isremovablymounted the gear 19 forming one of a set of change-gears includin also the gear 21, fixed for rotation with tie main transmission shaft 22. A connecting gear 23 is mounted on the arm 24 in the usual way.

Means are provided for driving the main transmission shaft from the motor 26, and for disconnectin the shaft from the motor at predetermined oints in, the travel of the carri ge." Preferaly a standard motor of about 1750 R. P. M. isused and it is therefore necessary to cut the speed down. For this purpose I provide a worm gear-in 27, between the motor shaft and the sha t 28. anda worm gearing 29 between the shaft 28 and the shaft 31 on which is loosely mounted a sleeve 32 having a gear 33 fixed at one end, and with a friction clutch 34 at the other end interposed between the sleeve and the shaft. The clutch is operatedby the collar 36 connected by yoke 37 and rod 38 with the control lever 39, pivoted on the pin 41, by

the side of the. lever 42, to which it is normally locked by the spring pressed latch 43, released-by the grip lever 44. The lower end of the lever 42 is connected to the rod 46 slidable in the bracket 47 and actuated by the roller 48 in the cam groove 49. 'Thus thecam will automatically operate the clutch, which may also be operated manilally by releasing the latch 43.

The gear 33 is in mesh with a'wide gear 51 loosely mounted on the main shaft 22 and forming part of a clutch having a plurality of teeth 52 on. one side and two sets of teeth53 and 54 on the other side. The clutch gear 51 is provided with an annular groove engaged by the shifting yoke 55. connected by the rod. 56 to the controldev r 57, held by the latch '58 in one of three posit ions determined by notches in the segment 5 Also mounted for axial movement on the main shaft, but splined thereto, is a sleeve 60, having an annular groove engaged by the shifting yoke 61, connected to the control lever 62, held by the latch 63 in one of three positions determined by notches in the segment 64. The sleeve is provided with a plurality of teeth 66 adapted to be engaged with the teeth 54 on the clutch gear. J ournaled on the sleeve 60 is the hooded gear 67 having teeth 68 adapted to be engaged with the teeth 53 on the clutch gear. The gear 67 is in mesh with the bull Wheel or gear 69 meshing in the rack 71, and fixed on the shaft 72 journaled in suitable bearings below the carriage. A small sprocket 73 is fixed on this shaft and is connected by chain 74- to the large sprockets 76 fixed on the sleeve '77 which is journaled in the bearing 78 and loose on the mainshaft 22. The sleeve is also provided with teeth 79 adapted to interriage forwardly and rotating the face plate and pipe.

If the clutch gear is shifted in the other direction. to interlock the teeth 52 and 79, the drive thru the sprockets 76 and 73 "and shaft 72 to the bull wheel is at higher speed and in the contrary'direction to move the carriage backwardly to first position, the main shaft 22 and the face plate drive being inactive during this recovery movement of clutch 34 will result in propelling the carthe carriage, and the gear 67turning freely on thesleeve 60.

It will also be seen that by appropriate shifting of the clutches, the facedplate may be rotated, or the carriage'move each independently of the other. When the carriage onl lever 62 is pulled backwardly (to the. left of Figure 2) so that the teeth 66 are not, engageable by the teeth 54. Movement backwardly of the lever 57 to engage the teeth 53 and 68 results in a forward drive connection for the carriage.

If it is desired merely to rotate the pipe is to be moved forwardly, the.

without moving the. carriage, this may be done by leaving the lever 57' in central position and moving the lever 62 to engage the teeth 66 with-the teeth 54. Separate movement of the carriage in either direction or rotation of the face plate, is usually necessary during the positioning of the pipe on the machine and the startmg of the wrap-.

ping strip.

As shown in Figure 3, the cam 49 is provided with offset portions 81 and. 82, so

accordance with the size of formedthat the friction clutch 34. is disengaged automatically when the carriage reaches either end of the track. Thus at the rear end of the track the carriage is brought automatically to rest and at the forward end of the track the carriage is brought an:

tomatically to rest and the rotation of the It will YVhile ermanently joined pipe may be wrappe the wrapping extending continuously over the coupling, it is usually desirable to leave a space 84 at each end of each piece of pipe free. of wrapping to facilitate the joining of the lengths of the pipe when laid. When this system is followed the successive lengths of pipe are joined temporarily by a plug coupling 86 having conical ends 87 adapted to seat in the adjacent ends of the pipe. By reason of the spring held lever 88, which acts as a switch, the offset portion 83 is operative only on the forward travel of the carriage. The cam is straight for the return trip so that the carriagemovement is not interrupted before its comple tion.

Fixed at suitable intervals along the frame 2 are caster wheels 93,"preferably arranged in groups of three as shown in Figure 0. Each wheel is mounted on a shaft 94 held axially in position by the collars 96 so the,

caster wheels maybe radially adjusted in ipc being wrapped. The caster mounting of the wheels 93 is of course prompted by the fact that the motion of the pipe is a helical one. I

Means are also provided for feeding a strip 97 of wrapping material to the pipe and for applying to the strip a cementitious water proof material preferably of a bituminous nature. A well designed and convenient mechanism for doing this is shown in the co pending application of Leland S. Roscner, Serial Number 728,551 filed July 28, 1924. It is therefore not necessary to describe this mechanism in detail, but in general terms the device comprises a frame matically.

98,1nounted for pivotal movement above the vertical axis 99 and disposed over the tank 101, which is adapted to hold the bituminous material thru which the strip-of wrapping material is passed by means of the guide and tension rollers102. The material in the tank is kept in a fluid condition by suitable burners within the flues 103.

The strip of wrapping material is drawn" oil of the supply roll 104,. suitably carried on the frame; and the angular position of the frame, which is of course dependent on the ratio of the two movements of the pipe,

is fixed by the arm 106.

Inusing my machine apiece .ofpipe is inserted in the machine on the supporting caster wheels 93 with the forward end of the pipe in convenient position opposite the frame holding the wrapping materiaL- The carriage is then run forward to seat the chuck on the face plate in the rear end of.

the pipe. The strip of wrappingmaterial is then started by hand, and continued by the proper engagement of the clutches. As

the carriage reaches theend of its forward movement motion automatically ceases by the disengagement of the frictionclutch 34.- The chuck dogs are'now-turned out of engagement with the pipe and the lever 57 34','the carriage is backed'fre of the pipe and returned to first positionjthe face plate not being rotated on the return trip. Shortly -pushed in to engage the teeth 52 and 79 'With. the throwing in of the friction clutch after the carriagestarts on its reverse movement the lever 42 is ,moved by the cam so ice that the latch 43 snaps into place. to interlock the two levers 39and 42, and on reaching the end of the recoverymovement the friction clutch is once more released auto A new length of pipe is now placed in the machine, the rear end mounted on the face plate huck and the forward end coupled" tothe rear end of the preceding length of pipe by suitable'movement of the a carriage without rotation of the-pipe. The clutch gear 51 is now shifted bythe lever 57 to engage the gear 67 and sleeve 60, and with the throwing in of the clutch 34, the wrap- )in movement of the i e-once more be gins. Shortly after the forwardmovement begins, movement of the lever 42permits the latch 43' to snap into place to lock the levers movement of the pipe automatically ceases to permit the wrapping to' be interrupted over the coupling. .At this point the wrapping is torn to'leave' the adjacent ends) of the joined pipes bare. The end; of the strip is then started again; by hand and the cycle of operations repeated. I

I claim: 1. In a machine for wrapping ob ects, a

Y39 and 42 so that when the cam roller 48 4 reaches the offset portion 83 in the cam,

carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck on the carriage for supporting one end of the ob ect, means for Y propelling the carriage along the track, and I propelling the carriage along the track, and

means for rotating the object, and means for adjusting to a predetermined ratio the rotary speed of the object and the speed of movement of the carriage.

3. In a machine for Wrapping objects, a carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck on the carriage for supporting one end of thetobject, means for propelling the carriage along the track, and means for rotating the object, and. means for feeding a strip of wrapping material to said object. Y

4. In a machine for wrapping objects, a carriage, a'track on which the carriage is movable, a-chuck on the carriage for supporting one end of the object, means for propelling the carriage along the track, and means for rotating the object, a body of fluid and means for feedinga strip of wrapping material thru said fluid to said object.

' 5. In a machine for wrapping objects, a carriage, aitrack. on which the carriage is movable,'.a chuck on the carriage for supporting one end of the object, means for propelling the carriage along the track, and

means for rotating' the object, means for feedinga strip of wrapping material to said object, and means other end of the object.

6. In a machine for wrapping objects, a carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck on the carriage for supporting; one end of the object, means for I for supporting the propelling the carriage forwardly along the track, means for rotating the object, and means for effecting a recovery movement of said carriage. v

7. In a machine for wrapping objects, a carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck on the carriage for supporting one end of the object, means for propelling the carriage along the track, means for rotating the chuck, and means for adjusting to a predetermined ratio the rotary speed of the chuck and the speed of movement of the carriage.

8.,In a machine for wrapping objects, a carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck on the carriage for supporting'one end of the object, means for propelling the carriage along the track, means for rotating the chuck and means for adjusting to a predetermined ratio the rotary speed-of the chuck and the speed of movement of the carriage, and means for feeding a strip of wrapping material to said object. a

9. In a machine for wrapping objects, a carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck on the carriage for supporting one end of the object, means for propelling the carriage along the track, means for rotating the chuck, and means for adjusting to a predetermined ratio the ro tary speed of the chuck and the speed of movement of the carriage, a body of fluid, and means for feeding a strip of wrapping material thru said fluid to said object.

10. In a machine for wrapping objects, a

carriage, a track on which t e carriage 1s movable,'a chuck on the carr age for supporting one end of the object, means for propelling the carriage forwardly along the track, means for rotating the chuck, and means for adjusting to a predetermined ratio the rotary speed ofthe chuck, and the speed of movement of the carriage, and'means for effecting a recovery movement of said carriage.

' 11. In a machine for'wrapping objects, a .carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck on' the carriage for supporting one end of the object, a prime mover "on said carriage, variable speed means for driving the chuck 'from the prime mover, means for propelling the carriage forwardly along the track, means; forpropelling the carriage backwardly along the 'track, and

manually operated means for connecting the prime mover to either of said propelling means.

12. In a machine for wrapping objects a carriage, a-track on which the. carriage is movable, a chuckon the carriage for supporting one end of the object, a fixed rack, a driving gear on the carriage'and meshing with the rack, a prime mover on the carriage,-and means for operatively connecting and disconnecting the prime mover with the chuck and the driving gear.

13. In a machine for wrapping objects,

a carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck on the carriage for sup- POItlIlg' one end of the object, a fixed rack, a driving gear on the carriage and meshing with the rack, a prime mover on the carriage, toothed clutch means interposed between the prime mover and the driving gear and the chuck, and a. friction clutch inter posed between the prime mover and the toothed clutch means.

14. In a machine for Wrapping objects a carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck on the carriage for sup porting one end of the object, a fixed rack, a driving gear'on the carriage and meshing with the rack, a prime mover on the earriage, means operatively connecting the prime mover with the chuck and the drivi ng gear, and automatically operating means for disconnecting the prime mover from the chuck and driving gear at predetermined points during the movement of the carriage.

15. .In a machine for wrapping objects a carriage, a track on Which-the carriage is movable, a clmck on the carriage for sup porting one end of the object, a fixed rack, a driving gear on the carriage and meshing with the rack, a prime mover on the carriage, clutch means interposed between the prime mover and the driving gear and the chuck, manually operated means for (.'l();: ingand opening the clutch and automatically operated mean: for opening the clutch.

16. In a'machine for wrapping objects a carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck on the carriage it'or supporting one end of the object, a fixed rack, a driving gear on the carriage and meshing with the rack, a prime mover' on the carriage, connecting means including a clutch between the prime mover and the driving gear, connecting means including a clutch and speed varying mechanism between the prime .mover and the chuck, and manually controlled means for operating the clutches.

17. In a machine for wrapping objects, a carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck-on the carriage for supporting one end of the object, a source of power, and said power source to drive the carriage and the c uck together or separately.

18. In a machine for wrapping objects, a carriage, a track on which thecarriage is movable, a chuck on the carriage for supporting one end of the object, a source of power, and selective means for connecting said power source to drive the carriage forwardly and simultaneously rotate the chuck or to drive the carriage backwardly or rotate the chuck. l a

19. In a machine for wrapping objects, a carriage, a track on which the carriage is an able, a chuck on the 'arriage for supporting one end of the object, a prime mover on the carriage, means adapted to be driven by the prime mover for propelling the carriage along tllc.t1'tLCl(, mean: adapted to be driven by the prime mover for rotating the chuck and selective means for connectin the prime mover to either or both of said driven means.

20. In a machine for wrapping objects, a carriage, a track on which the carriage is movable, a chuck onv the carriage for supporting one end of th object, a prime mover on-the carriage, means adapted to be driven by the prime mover for propelling the carriage along the track, means adapted to be driven by the prime mover for rotating-the chuck, selective means for connecting the prime mover to either or both of said driven means, and means for'varying the ratio of p speeds .of the driven means selective means for connecting In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand.

' CHARLES S. EVANS. 

